U.S., IRAQ IN MISSILE DUEL

20 Mar 2003By cjmilcom

"U.S. Patriot missiles knocked two Iraqi missiles out of the sky Thursday, hours after two others landed without injury near the U.S. forces' main logistics center in the Kuwaiti desert," CNN reports.The U.S. military believes the Iraqi weapons are the short range al Samoud missiles. But they're not entirely sure.THERE'S MORE: Fighting on the ground is intensifying, as well. LAV-25 light armored vehicles from the Marine First Division locked horns with Iraqi armored personnel carriers. The Marines "engaged and destroyed" the Iraqi vehicles using "25-millimeter chain guns, a type of machine gun, and TOW guided missiles," according to the New York Times.AND MORE: A second wave of airstrikes has hit Baghdad. Seventy-two missiles have struck altogether. But the massive, so-called "shock and awe" campaign is on hold, however, until a battle assessment can be made, CNN reports.